Changes
by Bunny D Kate
Summary: This is not the typical Gravitation FF I guess... It's all about a little romance thingy between Judy Winchester and her loyal bodyguard Ark on a trip to Hawaii (and Thomas Magnum is involved as well XD)


**Changes**

Marriage is supposed to be something sacred. You marry the person you love and stay with this person for the rest of your life. "Till death do us part". Well, that's the theory anyway... But who still believes in this old-fashioned nonsense? Only sentimental fools do. Today, people get married because they are afraid of dying alone and because marriage brings them financial advantages. Who cares if you don't love your wife or husband! Everything's fine as long as you don't have to throw up every time you look at your partner. But marriage doesn't mean you'll never be lonely again. Even when you're married to someone you can still feel as lonely as a man standing all alone on the top of Mount Everest. Sometimes, it takes a lot of time to realise this and it takes even more courage to change your own situation even if it means to break the bond you tied when you still believed in true love...

"Who is this guy again?", she asks while going through her bags again. She tends to forget things when she's in a hurry.

"He's an actor. Used to be really big in the eighties. You must have seen one of his shows!", Rage answers and looks worried. They have to leave as soon as possible. They are late again and even a private jet doesn't wait forever. Judy is a great actress and a lovely woman but sometimes she's nothing more than a walking, talking disaster that pulls at her nerves.

"Great, I've lost my passport. I can't go to Hawaii without my passport.", Judy says in an anxious voice and empties the contents of her purse on her bed.

"Why does this always happen to me?"

She's close to tears now.

"Mrs Winchester?"

The man in the corner clears his throat to get her attention and when she finally looks up he waves at her with some papers he's holding in his hand.

"Maybe you're looking for these...", he says and smiles at her with his sunglasses on.

Judy lets out a relieved sigh and walks up to him.

"What would I do without you, Ark?", she laughs and gives him a quick kiss on the cheek before taking her passport and putting it in her handbag. She doesn't notice the look he gives her and when she looks at him he's already back to professional.

"Can we go now? Please!", Rage tries to speed up things again.

"I'd love to, believe me. But we can't leave before Crawd is here to collect Michael."

Whenever the name of her husband is mentioned the atmosphere gets noticeably colder.

"We can take Michael to his grandmother. It's on the way and we would save some time." Rage doesn't want to give up just yet.

"Of course we could but last time Crawd promised him that they would spend some time together and if he breaks his word again Michael will be devastated. Let's give him another five minutes, okay?", she pleads though it is obvious that she's annoyed.

"Fine.."

Rage brushes away a forgotten lipstick and sits down on the huge bed.

"There's nothing you can do. Just go with the flow..."

These thoughts run through her head like a mantra in these kind of situations. But they never quite work...

There's the sound of a key turning in the lock of the front door.

"Anybody home?", a deep voice calls from downstairs.

"Bedroom."

A sufficient answer that leads him to the right room which he now enters with a broad smile.

"Sorry I'm late."

"Damn right you are. We'll miss our flight because of you. Can't you be on time just for once?", Judy greets him.

"Do you always have to be so melodramatic?", K replies and seems a little annoyed by this "hearty" welcome.

"Where's Michael?"

But the question's unnecessary because right at that moment a little boy comes running into the bedroom and throws himself at K.

"Daddy! You're here. I've missed you!", he calls out and his father puts him in his arms and throws him up in the air. The child lets out screams of joy.

"I've missed you, too, big boy. Now what are we doing today?", K asks while turning around in circles while his son tries to imitate the sound of a plane.

"Can we play basketball?" Michael asks and his blue eyes get all big and shiny as usual when he wants something.

"Sure. I love that game!", his dad responds.

"No wonder. With that height...", Rage mumbles under her breath.

"What was that, love?", he turns towards her with a smile.

"Nothing. Now you're here we really need to go!", Judy ends the discussion before it has started and takes up her handbag from the bed.

"Okay Baby. Mommy will be back in three days."

"For that time you will stay with your granny, alright?", she addresses her son again when he doesn't react at first.

Interrupted in his play he looks at her in surprise.

"I'm staying with dad!", he answers with pouted lips.

"Course you are, honey. But when daddy's busy he'll take you to granny. Right daddy?", she asks and gives K a warning look.

"Your mom's right, son, but we'll have a lot of fun together this weekend.", he replies as he is supposed to and hands Michael over to his mother so they can say goodbye.

"Bye Baby. I'll miss you so much! But I'll call you everyday, okay?", she says and showers her son with little kisses.

"Come back soon, mommy.", he whispers and hugs her tightly.

She hates to leave him behind but these business meetings would just be deadly boring for him. She swallows back the tears that are rising in her throat and is about to leave the room when Michael calls her back.

"You haven't said goodbye to daddy."

"Oh..."

She rushes back and gives her husband a faked kiss on the lips. They smile at each other without real emotions and then she's off to the airport.

On the plane she is unusually quiet and neither Rage nor Ark dare to break the silence. Husband and wife aren't the only ones who feel uncomfortable in this situation...

Getting of the plane about an hour later they step right into the warm Hawaiian breeze and the blue sky makes them forget their worries in an instant.

"Why can't we live here? I mean New York is a fascinating city but this is absolutely amazing!", Judy gasps and looks around with eyes wide open.

"Because it's not very well situated to pursue your Hollywood career. A little… of the track.", is Rage's answer and she's already off to the check-out.

Outside the airport a black limousine awaits them and Judy is about to get in when Rage holds her back.

"So be nice to Mr Magnum and I'll see you in two days.", she smiles and gives her boss a quick hug.

"Where are you going? I thought you were coming with us."

Judy seems genuinely surprised.

"Oh come on. I told you last week that I had some business to attend to here in town. And then I told you again two days ago. And I think I mentioned it yesterday, too… But I'll join you when I'm done and I'm sure Ark will take good care of you as he always does.", she replies and gives the bodyguard a friendly dig in the ribs. Then she waves at a taxi and Ark opens the door of the limousine to let Judy in.

Both of them watch the beautiful view that they pass by on the drive to Mr Magnum's residence.

"It's amazing, isn't it? That's what I imagine paradise to look like.", Judy says without taking her eyes of the clear blue ocean.

Ark looks at her with affection and it isn't quite obvious whether it's for her or for the landscape outside.

They drive up a long gravelled driveway that leads them to a building that looks more like a castle than a house.

"I'm used to luxury but this is…"

"…impressive.", Ark finishes her sentence and gets her baggage out of the trunk.

They stand in front of the door for a while before it is finally opened by a little man with greyish hair.

"Yes? How can I help you?", he asks in a British accent. From the inside they can hear loud voices. The old man gives an apologetic wave towards the noise before he goes on.

"We have some "unexpected visitors"…"

"I see… My name is Judy Winchester and this is my bodyguard Ark. I have a meeting with Mr Magnum today.", she explains and reaches out to shake his hand.

"Ah yes, Mrs Winchester. You are expected of course. Please come in. It's lovely to meet you. My name is Higgins."

He gives her a warm smile and leads them into the hallway.

"You can sit down over there in the living room while I take your bags to your room. Let me take your coat. You must be melting away. Mr Magnum will be with you in a second."

On the way to the living room Judy catches a glimpse of a huge black man with an unusual haircut and huge amounts of gold around his neck who is standing a little further down the hall.

"I'm beginning to wonder what kind of movie they want to make here…", she whispers in Ark's direction who is already checking the surroundings for potential dangers.

The second turns out to be something more like fifteen minutes but then they are joined by a man in white shorts and an open shirt that exposes his hairy chest.

"Sorry I'm late but the house is in a bit of a mess in the moment. I normally wouldn't let a lady as beautiful as you wait for so long. Hello, my name is Thomas Magnum. Pleasure to meet you, darling.", he greets her and places a polite kiss on her hand. His moustache tickles her skin.

"Hi Mr Magnum. I'm happy to be here. I'm Judy Winchester and this is Ark, my bodyguard.", she says and presents one of her winning smiles that her fans love so much.

"Oh, hey buddy. Can't leave this girl alone, right?", Magnum laughs but Ark doesn't move a muscle and keeps watching him through his sunglasses.

"Doesn't talk much, hu?"

"Well, he's always a little sceptical when it comes to strangers. But that comes with his job. Don't take it personal.", Judy apologises and looks at him more closely. Rage told her that he must be about 50 by now but he's in really good shape for his age.

"I'm so glad that you agreed to come here. You were really my first choice for this role. I've been a big fan of yours for ages!", he starts flirting and she is keen on reacting.

"Oh really? That's so sweet. To be quite honest with you I hadn't really heard of you before I received your offer but now that I met you I'm sure I'll become one of your biggest fans.", she answers in a playful voice.

"Well, you can ask me whatever you like. But maybe we should discuss this with a glass of wine. And what do you say we move outside? The beach is lovely at this time of the day. We can watch the sun go down." His voice now gets more seductive by the second.

"Great idea. I'd love to see the beach.", she answers and links arms with him.

"Brilliant. I've got some nice drops in my private wine cellar. Why don't you join me and choose one you like?", he asks while already manoeuvring her out of the room.

Ark is at their heels already. He just follows them without a word leaving a little distance between him and the flirting couple.

"Does he follow you _everywhere_?"

Thomas Magnum seems both confused and annoyed by the presence of Judy's bodyguard.

Judy now turns her head, too, and looks at Ark directly.

"Excuse me one second, Thomas…" she smiles at him and walks over to the guy in the black suit.

"I know you want to protect me. That's your job after all, but I'm also an adult. I'm sure nothing's going to happen to me. So why don't you stay here for a while? Take a look around the house. Relax a little.", she whispers her suggestions in his ear but Ark clearly doesn't approve.

"Mrs Winchester! I couldn't…"

"Please! I need some privacy once in a while!", she pleads and looks at him with puppy eyes. She knows this trick always works with him. He can't resist.

"Okay…", he mutters and walks of with hanging shoulders. As soon as another man shows up he's nothing more than thin air to her.

Thomas leads her down some steep stairs into a dark cellar where he keeps his wine. She's walking in front of him with a candle in her hand and she can feel his broad hand resting on her shoulder keeping her on the right track. She remembers that Crawd used to do that in their early days...

She startles when she hears a noise from upstairs.

"Are you scared?"

"What if?", she replies in a stubborn voice.

"Don't worry. I'll protect you, darling.", he laughs.

She knows that he's just mocking her but his presence makes her feel safer already.

He has a pretty nice collection of different wines though it seems like he's not a real connoisseur. Maybe he just keeps it to impress women…

She chooses a nice red wine and they return upstairs and directly head for the beach which is only a few yards away from his backdoor. They sit down in the warm sand and Thomas pours both of them a glass of wine.

"To a beautiful evening with a beautiful lady.", he toasts.

"Cheers!", she laughs and watches the waves slowly fading into the wet sand in front of them.

"And you really haven't seen any of my shows?", he asks after a few moments of silence.

"No, at least I can't remember… I've heard that you did one of those detective shows with lots of fighting and car chases and everything. I'm not really into that. But I bet my husband knows all about it…", she says and again her tone changes slightly.

He looks at her in shock.

"You're married?"

"Yes…"

"I had no idea."

"Well…I am but why do you…?"

"Why hasn't anybody told me that she's married?", he mutters more to himself than to her.

"First of all I don't understand why this is so shocking to you and second I don't think that it's any of your business!"

Only a few moments ago she felt as relaxed as she hasn't felt in a long time and now she feels her stomach turning in anger.

"So now you don't want me to do this movie with you just because I'm not single anymore?", she shouts at him and his hesitation to answer is enough to make her completely furious.

"No… I mean… I wouldn't have said it like that… It's just…this character in the film is supposed to be a little…well…less experienced… ", he tries to explain but stumbles over his own words.

"And now I'm too old as well? Are you kidding me? What kind of old, dick-controlled bastard are you?" She's screaming now and looks at him with eyes dark with fury.

His moustache that she found so attractive when she first saw him now makes him look like a greasy pervert and she wants to tear it of him just as all the hair that is covering his chest like disgusting, rotten moss.

Just as she is about to throw more insults at him a man comes running towards them from the house. He is still panting when he arrives and the expression on his face is worried.

"Thomas, there's something going seriously wrong in your kitchen right now. Maybe you should take a look while it is still standing…"

He jumps to his feet immediately.

"I'm sorry, Mrs Winchester, but I'm afraid I'll have to take a look at that. But I'll be back…"

He doesn't offer any more explanation and runs up the path to his house with the other guy.

She knows that he won't come running back to her. Maybe this incident wasn't planned but for him it came in very handy… But it's probably for the best. She might have done things to him that she would have regretted afterwards. Now she has to release her anger and her frustration in a different way and tears run down her face. She doesn't scream. She doesn't sob. She's completely silent.

So he thinks she's too old… Maybe she has overreacted… No, he's a bloody dickhead!

The evening breeze cools her face and after she has gathered herself a little she gets up and walks back to the house.

She makes a little detour so that she doesn't have to walk by the kitchen but she can still hear loud shouting and strange noises coming from that direction. This must be some kind of madhouse…

When she enters the living room it's empty.

"Ark!", she shouts but doesn't get any answer.

"ARK!" Now she's yelling and her voice cracks.

There's a racket coming from the stairs and a moment later the man in black comes storming into the room.

"What's going on?", he shouts, gun in hand and looks around in alarm.

"Where the hell have you been?"

She walks over to him and hits him on the arm as hard as she can.

"Mrs Winchester…?"

He stares at her in utter confusion.

"Why did you leave me alone with him?", she shouts and starts drumming her fists on his chest.

He senses that she needs to let off some steam and allows her to go on for a while before he grabs hold of her hands.

"I left because you told me to. Remember?", he reminds her while he is still holding her hands.

"But you should have known better. I'm crap when it comes to men and that's a fact!"

Her eyes are filling with tears again when she looks up at his face and she's trembling.

"What has this bastard done to you? I'll kill him!", he growls, ready to storm of and take revenge for her. But she doesn't let go of his hand.

"Forget about it. He's not worth it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I just want to go home.", she says in a small voice.

"But what about Rage? She wanted to meet us here."

"I'll give her a call, okay?"

"Of course. I'll get our bags from upstairs.", he replies though he seems a little disappointed.

"And you really want to leave already?", Higgins asks when they are standing in front of the house with their bags waiting for their limousine to come.

"Yes, I'm sorry but thanks for your hospitality.", Judy says with a weak smile.

The butler gives a little bow and returns to the house.

Judy spots a little wooden bench next to the house and sits down with a deep sigh. Ark takes a seat next to her and they sit in silence for a while.

"It's beautiful."

He points at the sky when he sees the question in her eyes.

"The sunset."

"True…", she says and her next sigh is even deeper than the one before.

"It must be hard to be away from your husband and your son so often."

She thinks for a moment before she answers and keeps on looking at the sky that the setting sun has painted in different shades of orange and red.

"I got used to being away from Crawd. We're both very busy with our jobs…", she replies but then she hesitates.

"Well, that's not the only reason. I mean, even if we are together in the same room it feels like we're miles away from each other. We just drifted apart in the last couple of months."

Again there is some kind of uncomfortable silence. Finally, Ark manages to react.

"You two should talk about it. Who knows…maybe it will all work out…", he says though deep inside he hopes for the opposite to happen.

Judy turns towards him and puts her hand on his.

"That's nice of you to say but we've been through all that already. We talked about it, we tried to spend more time together, we even went to a therapist for a while but it only became clearer that this won't help. If it weren't for Michael I probably would have divorced him months ago."

"Or maybe we wouldn't have gotten married in the first place…", she adds but it's not more than a whisper.

"Do you know that feeling when you wake up in your bed and you're all alone and suddenly you get scared of staying alone forever?"

He can't stand to see her sad like that. It makes his heart ache as though parts are being ripped out of it.

"That's not going to happen. You're the most beautiful woman in the world! Not all men are too blind to see that."

She looks at him in surprise and he blushes when he realises what he just said.

"I'm sorry, Mrs Winchester… I didn't have the right to say anything like that…", he stutters helplessly.

"So you think I'm beautiful?", she asks and a smile lights up her face again.

"I…"

He's blushing hard right now and her smile gets broader.

"Ark, I had no idea…" She's trying to sound outraged but can't help giggling.

"Right, rub it in. Make fun of me if it makes you feel better."

She holds back when she notices the offended look in his eyes.

"Oh, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. That was so sweet of you. And even if I'll never find a decent man I won't be alone because I'll always have the best bodyguard of all times right here by my side.", Judy says with a twinkle in her eyes and thankfully squeezes his hand.

There probably isn't a deeper shade of red that his face could take on but lucky for him the limousine arrives just at this moment and he is spared the embarrassment to answer.

Just as Ark is opening the door to let Judy in the front door of the house is flung open and Thomas Magnum comes running out.

"Judy! Wait a second. I need to talk to you!"

"What the hell…?", Judy mutters in disgust.

"You got it all wrong. Let me explain!"

"I think Mrs Winchester understands perfectly well. Now back off!", Ark growls and with a quick movement he's between Judy and the intruder.

"Hey, can't she speak for herself? Your services aren't needed here, Mr Babysitter.", Magnum barks at him and that is probably the last thing he'll be saying for a while because Ark then punches him right in the face and knocks him out.

"I don't know if that was such a good idea…"

"Sorry, I lost control for a moment."

"It was fucking brilliant though! But maybe we should leave now…", Judy says and looks at the body that is lying motionless on the driveway.

"He's not dead, is he, Ark?"

"No, I just grazed him."

"Fine. Driver, to the airport, please. We need to catch a flight."

In the car she calls K on her mobile.

"…I'll be home earlier…Tonight…It didn't work out the way I'd planned it, alright!… Why are you so happy about that?…You have to leave? Where are you going?…Japan?….The band, I know…And when?…Tonight?…Well, isn't that perfect timing!…Yes, I'm being sarcastic! Have you told Michael yet?…And when did you want to tell him about it?…You'll tell him yourself or I'll rip your head of, Crawd!…Yeah, see you later. Give Michael a kiss."

She snaps her mobile shut with a sigh.

"Everything alright?", Ark asks.

"Yes, he's just the usual jerk, that's all."

"I see…"

During the flight she's yawning a lot.

"Tired?"

"I think the whole day might have been a little too much for me…"

"That's perfectly understandable."

"May I?", she asks and leans her head on his shoulder.

"Sure…"

"Thanks, darling."

She falls asleep in an instant and so he is left alone with all the thoughts that are running through his head right now.

Did she really notice how he declared his love for her back then or did she believe he was only joking? Could a woman like her ever fall for a man like him? And if, should they really mix work and private life? Would she ever get divorced from her husband? If they lived together would Michael accept him as his new dad or would he blame him for ruining his parents' marriage?

Only when Judy puts her arm around him in her sleep he gets interrupted in his thinking. She lets out a little sigh but this time it's a satisfied one and there's a smile on her face.

He closes his eyes and a warm feeling is spreading inside him.

His eyelids flip open again when Judy starts moving her hands as if she was stroking his chest. He looks at her but she's still sleeping. He wonders what she is dreaming about. About him?

This time she doesn't see him blushing but he still feels that this isn't the right way to approach their new relationship. If she's stroking his chest she should at least be aware of it!

So he takes her wandering hand, holds it for a moment and then gently puts it back to her side. She'll never know…


End file.
